The ongoing saga of Button Ginger. I know there are readers out there.

Monday, 26 October 2009

You learn something new every day......

Today I signed on and brought up the notion of training and such.

The guy who signed me on showed me upstairs and I evenually spoke with a young guy. He told me about Rapid Response Fund for the redundant like me, which will pay for any training (within reason) I might need to get back into a job and the Advisor Discretionary Fund.

The ADF is a secret little pot of money which will pay for interview clothes, work clothes (steel toe caps, hivi vests etc) if you ask politely enough, are needy enough and the Advisor likes you enough.

While I was waiting to see him, I met Julie. She was waiting for a client who was late turning up. All the while I was chatting to her like we were old friends, I couldn't quite place her.

As we chatted about how we came to be at the JobCentre, my mind was rolling back the mists of my poor memory for faces and trying to work out who she was.

Then it struck me. I hadn't seen her since she fired me. She let me go after David Wilson Homes were taken over by Barratts and the recruitment freeze was over. Then the Sales Office were relocated to Coventry and some were themselves let go Julie included.

She was now a Six Month Advisor, dealing with people who had become long term unemployed. She recommended the internet

Yep. Got that.

The NHS website.

Yep. It's on my list of Favourites.

The local council.

Yep. Wolverhampton Council Jobs Page is one of my Favourites

I reminded her of a job for a Clerical Officer being advertised.

She wished me luck and jokingly told me she didn't want to see me again as she went back to her desk to wait for her client.

He showed up shortly afterwards. Only 20 minutes late.

After finding out about money. I did a job search on the Job Centre computers - again Sales, Engineering and Carers with cars. That's all that's needed.

I checked, no the Rapid Relief Fund will NOT pay for ordinary driving lessons.

I went home. I checked the internet again and found two jobs to apply for.